"5 hours' wait for a child with autism"

We brought our 4-year old son to A&E at Ealing Hospital today as he fell down the stairs and broke his leg. On arrival we clearly stated that he has autism, and is unable to wait long since he has no notion of time. Despite this, we were in hospital for 5.5 hours before being allowed to leave!! The A&E environment is scary enough for most children anyway, but for a child with autism it is totally foreign and we cannot even explain to him what is happening in a way that he understands. The service was not particularly busy, but seemed totally disorganised. We were very disappointed by this experience and sincerely hope that the next time we visit, our son's disability will be taken into account more seriously.